Trafalgar Capital Management, a London-based fund manager founded in 1999 and now chaired by former Conservative government minister Lord Strathclyde, has launched a $40 million long/short equity fund. Some of the funds were already under management, but the firm has raised additional capital from private investors for the new fund. CSFB is prime broker to the fund, and Hemisphere is acting as fund administrator.
The new fund has enabled Trafalgar chief executive Nick Cremin, a former metals trader, to bolster his management team. Managing director Chris Aarons joins from Cheyne Capital Management – a hedge fund formed in 2000 by ex-Morgan Stanley bankers – where he was senior portfolio manager for Europe and Asia. Before joining Morgan Stanley in 1994, Aarons worked at another hedge fund: Buchanan Partners.
Other new hires will operate a proprietary quantitative model, which aims to achieve a combination of low volatility and 15 percent per annum returns. CIO Simon Colson joins from Deutsche Bank, where he worked in the equity derivatives group, and helped launch the Xavex Hedge First funds of funds product for retail investors. Sunjiv Mainie joins from JP Morgan Fleming, where he was manager for quantitative strategies. Joanna Janion, who will be involved in marketing as well as fund management, joins Trafalgar Capital from the private wealth management department at Morgan Stanley.